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UCSD Scientists Demonstrate Use of 3D Printing with Stem Cells

UCSD Scientists Demonstrate Use of 3D Printing with Stem Cells for Spinal Repair

UC San Diego medical researchers have for the first time used 3D printing technology to create a spinal cord and implant it with neural stem cells into rats with spinal cord injuries, the university announced Monday.

The implant is designed to promote nerve growth and regrowth for victims of severe spinal cord injuries, according to the researchers. For the rats in the study, the 3D printed spinal cords spurred tissue growth, the regeneration of nerve cell extensions called axons and expansion of the implanted neural stem cells into the rat's natural spinal cord.

"The new work puts us even closer to real thing," said Jacob Koffler, the study's co-first author. "The 3D scaffolding recapitulates the slender, bundled arrays of axons in the spinal cord. It helps organize regenerating axons to replicate the anatomy of the pre-injured spinal cord."

The SCI-Nurses are advanced practice nurses specializing in SCI/D care. They are available to answer questions, provide education, and make suggestions which you should always discuss with your physician/primary health care provider before implementing. Medical diagnosis is not provided, nor do the SCI-Nurses provide nursing or medical care through their responses on the CareCure forums.

Unfortunately they seem to be going the same path to a long long process.

The UCSD team continues to work on further improvements, including the addition of growth factors or other ingredients that may further encourage neuron growth and functional recovery. If all goes well, the team hopes to launch human clinical trials of their cell-based treatments for spinal cord injury within a few years.

If they think it works, why not go to human trials with what they have now, and refine it in parallel.

If they think it works, why not go to human trials with what they have now, and refine it in parallel.

Considering the cost and time involved in human clinical trials, it wouldn't make sense to test a product for market that may need additional growth factors or other key ingredients. A car with 3-1/2 wheels wouldn't perform and sell very well, right? (They'll only have one shot. They best try to make it a viable product).

why not just inject the growth factors alone to the original cord, in most sci cases there's no 'gap' to fill in a 3D printed cord unless you cut and 'glue' both ends, even if succes printing a real cord, makes no sense to fuse 2 cuts instead of 1... Media hype at its best, thats why rats are used since they cant defend themselves IMO. Great marketing technique to free publicity to raise funds that may lead nowhere except money in the pockets... just pisses me off

Last edited by Moe; 06-10-2019 at 11:24 AM.

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